All Alone
by BlueSunflower
Summary: Explores Chris' possible childhood with the Charmed Ones.
1. Secrets

Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me.  
  
Chris quietly came up the steps to the Manor. He couldn't wait until this day was over. Man, today was a bad day. Nothing was going right. He was so tired. All Chris wanted right now was to go to his room, lock his door, and hide under his covers until tomorrow came.  
  
Carefully, he turned the doorknob and entered the Manor. He didn't want to disturb his mom and aunts. The less they knew the better. Turning around as he took his jacket and backpack off, he faced the dining room and froze. In an instant, he knew how much worse this day could get. Laying on top of the dining room table was an envelope. Chris didn't have to see the handwriting on it to know who it was for, who it was from, and what it was about. While Chris was trying to process the pain that the envelope was arising in him, his mom entered the room.  
  
"But it's my birthday," Chris whispered, tears forming in his eyes.  
  
"I know, sweetie. I'm so sorry."  
  
"It's my thirteenth birthday! You said it was a milestone! You said he'd have to come this time!" His voice was more forceful this time.  
  
"Maybe he can still make it," Piper tried to reassure her son.  
  
Chris walked past her to pick up the envelope. "No he won't. He never does. Why should now be any different?" Defeated, he turned around to head up the stairs. As he reached the second step, he heard his mother call him back.  
  
"How was school today?" Her tone was nonchalant, but Chris didn't notice. He did however, register the question. Mom never asked about school. Suddenly fearful, he turned to face her.  
  
"Fine," he tried to keep his voice steady.  
  
"Nothing new happen today?"  
  
"No," his eyes shifted down to the floor. Did she know? "Can I go now?"  
  
Piper watched her son. She sighed, "Sure, honey." She watched as he turned and raced up the stairs, as if he couldn't wait to get out of her sight. Behind her, Paige and Phoebe entered the room.  
  
"I can't do it. I can't confront him with this right now."  
  
"You have to, Piper. You have to find out why he's not going to school. Not to mention where he actually is going," Phoebe informed her sister.  
  
"It's his third school. Maybe I should just pull him out. Teach him myself," Piper fought the feelings of distress this idea would mean. How could she teach him when he couldn't even look her in the eyes? Chris needed far more than she could give him, even if he didn't know it. Piper had spent all of his life trying to keep him from learning too much about what she and her sisters did at home. It was far too dangerous for him, and Piper wanted to keep at least one of her children safe. School was the perfect answer. It kept Chris out of the house, and gave her time to work without worrying about him finding out too much.  
  
"Why on earth doesn't that boy ever talk to us?" Paige vented to no one in particular. Chris was spectacularly good at keeping things secret, a fact that frustrated his family to no end. Paige knew even if Chris needed help, he'd never tell her, let alone Piper. He was so amazingly reticent when it came to asking for anything, even money. It was like he didn't want to bother them for anything, even the normal things families did for each other.  
  
"He's not a burden," Phoebe spoke aloud, echoing Paige's thoughts. "I can't read him. His body language speaks volumes, but his mind is so closed..." Phoebe let the thought trail off.  
  
"He's my baby. I'll deal with it," Piper finally spoke. "But not right now, he's got too much on his mind. Sometimes I wish Leo could just let go. It kills me, that look in his eyes, when he first sees the envelope. I wonder if he ever actually reads them." Piper looked at her sisters. "Dinner. Lasagna. It's his favorite. I'm going to give him a nice meal tonight, and a happy birthday tomorrow if it kills me."  
  
Paige and Phoebe smiled. "How do we help?" Paige asked as they all returned to the kitchen.  
  
Upstairs, Chris entered his room and closed the door. He walked over to his bed and slumped onto it, staring at the envelope in his hand. Chris struggled with this every time, and every time was the same: Should he read it? Keep it? Throw it away? Would this be the time it says something different? Or was it like all the others? Wiping away his tears, he stood up and put the envelope on his dresser. Like every other time, he'd just put his decision off until later. Chris knew it wouldn't make any difference if he read the letter now or later. Dad still wasn't coming.  
  
Chris walked back over to his bed intending to get his books out when he realized he left his backpack downstairs. Panicking, he frantically tried to think of what to do. It would be disastrous if his mom or aunts found out what was in his backpack. He couldn't go downstairs, that would definitely raise suspicions, but how else was he going to get it back?  
  
Finally deciding, and praying no one was in the entryway to see, Chris did the only thing he could: He orbed the backpack up to him. Nervously, he waited to see if there was a reaction. Mom would freak if she knew he could do that. After several moments of silence, Chris breathed a sigh of relief. If anyone had seen the orb, he would surely know about it by now.  
  
Downstairs, Piper stood in shock. Her body literally could not move and her mind could not think. Chris' backpack had just orbed out, and she was certain that Paige wasn't the one doing the orbing. She knew Chris could orb, but she didn't know he could also orb other objects. Paige was the only current occupant in the house known to have that particular talent, and she could only do it because she was a telekinetic and part whitelighter. Piper, her mind now racing, called to her sisters. "Paige! Phoebe!"  
  
Both came running out of the kitchen. Piper had gone to set the table for dinner, why would she need their help for that? "What?" Phoebe asked, worried. She could empathically feel Piper's shock and confusion, and wondered what had happened to upset her sister so much.  
  
"Chris just orbed his backpack upstairs," Piper told them, dropping the silverware in her hands onto the table in a heap. "I was setting the table and I glanced over towards the door just in time to see his backpack dissolve into a cloud of orbs. Unless there was some reason you wanted it, Paige?" Piper asked, a little too hopefully.  
  
Paige's jaw had dropped. When she recovered, she answered, "No."  
  
Phoebe walked over to Chris' jacket, which had been on top of his backpack. "That's, uh, pretty impressive. Especially since he's never shown any active powers since we bound him when he was a baby. You didn't unbind him by any chance, did you Piper?"  
  
Piper, eyes still wide, replied, "No."  
  
Phoebe sighed, "I didn't think so. That would be too easy." 


	2. The Need for Help

Author's note: Thank you for the positive feedback. I really appreciated it. This story was meant to be a character sketch, but it keeps turning into a story and I don't know how I feel about that yet.  
  
Piper sat at the table, alone. Dinner had been a complete disaster. Chris had refused to leave his room, and her sisters had spent the entire meal telling her that she couldn't let Chris get away with hiding his secrets any more. Sooner rather than later, she realized she was going to have to force some answers from him. She couldn't keep ignoring what was going on, hoping it was going to get better on its own. She had to find out what her youngest child was up to. Most worrisome was the apparent return of his active powers, powers she had sworn he'd never have to use again.  
  
Piper got up and walked into the living room. She headed over to the mantle where an array of photos was placed. Looking at them, Piper felt nothing but sadness. Her family was in ruins, and the blame lay entirely on her. She picked up the picture of her, Leo, and Wyatt; then replaced it and fingered the picture of her and Chris. What she wouldn't give for a picture of all four of them together. Turning away, she headed upstairs. She'd do the dishes later. There were some people she needed to call.  
  
In his room, Chris was going through the items he had stored in his backpack. He had to hide them before his mom finally tired of his refusal to eat and barged in with some food. Several of them were books, normally nothing that would arouse suspicion-- unless one looked close enough to read the titles. Mostly, there were several books on magic, including one on potions. Chris knew quite a lot about this as his mom occasionally let him help make vanquishing potions. Surely nothing that should raise his mom's suspicions, except for the fact he wasn't allowed to take magic outside of the Manor. Mom didn't even think he was capable of doing this difficult of magic. If she found out the truth, he'd never regain her trust and Chris has spent his entire life trying to gain his mother's trust.  
  
The remaining book was from school. No one would think it was out of place in his backpack either, except that it was a geometry book. What made it stand out was the fact that Chris was too young to be learning such advanced math at school. Yet Chris needed the information now in order to make the astrology charts. He was incredibly smart, despite his failing grades. He could teach himself anything. Rounding out the contents of the backpack were some scrying crystals, a couple of maps, a notebook, and some potion ingredients. There was also a small box which Chris took care to make sure couldn't be opened by anyone but him. He'd put a spell on it. Yet another reason for his mom to distrust him, since Chris wasn't known to be able to write spells by himself either.  
  
Chris reluctantly gathered up all these items and went into his closet where he cleared his shoes from the left corner. There was a small cubbyhole he had created when he first started his current endeavor. Mom may be a clean freak but even she didn't feel the need to clean the corners of closets. Returning back to his bed, he brooded over what he was going to do now, since all his plans today had fallen apart. All the lies he'd told his family, everything he'd done, were all for nothing. The new powers he was experiencing were incredibly difficult to control, and something was going on that he didn't understand. Today's failure had confirmed it. Yet there was no one to turn to, especially not his family. The last thing Chris wanted to do was disappoint them again.  
  
Ever since he realized his powers were growing, he knew he'd have to keep them hidden. Chris knew full well that his mother and aunts prevented him from learning too much about witchcraft. They wanted him involved in magic as little as possible. Therefore, they did much of their work while he was away at school. He assumed the reason they were so overprotective was because of what had happened to Wyatt, although he didn't know why they bothered. Chris knew he was no match for Wyatt in the power department. It wasn't like he could conjure a dragon that terrorized a city, like his big brother did before Chris was born.  
  
Miserably, Chris realized that what he needed most right now was money. His mom refused to give him an allowance, though. She said that if he needed anything then he was supposed to ask. This made things especially difficult as that just meant he'd have to bother her with his problems, and she already had enough problems to deal with. He supposed that was probably the reason she put down the rule, but all it did was make Chris more reluctant to ask. There was only really one place he could go where he wouldn't be questioned or judged. With a heavy sigh, he got up to walk to her room.  
  
"Aunt Paige?"  
  
Startled, Paige whirled around to see her nephew standing in her doorway. Well, not so much in the doorway as hiding halfway behind it, with a look that plainly wondered if he was intruding. "Geez, Chris! Scare a lady to death!" She smiled.  
  
"Are you going demon hunting?" Chris asked.  
  
"Only if they're of the male variety," Paige answered lightly. Paige watched Chris closely. It was obvious he wanted something, but didn't feel he could ask yet. She watched as he shuffled his feet, trying to gather his courage.  
  
"You look very pretty," he finally mumbled. A pause, then: "Do you need any help?"  
  
Puzzled, Paige briefly wondered why he asked that. She was already dressed and her room was spotless. Then it dawned on her: He needed money, but as usual, felt he needed to earn it first.  
  
"Come here," she said gently, as she sat down on her bed. Chris walked into the room and sat beside her, never looking at her once. This killed Paige. Where did he ever get the idea he needed to earn his keep? He was constantly helping, often without being asked and frequently when no help was needed. Paige didn't think any other child on the planet did their chores as easily as Chris. That is if you could call them chores, as he was never really asked to do anything. It was worse when he came to her with these problems. Paige knew Piper would give Chris anything he asked for without question, but Chris never wanted to bother his mother. Wrapping her arms around her youngest nephew, she pulled him against her as she lay back against her backrest.  
  
"You going to be the man of the house while I'm gone?" Paige felt him resting his head on her chest. "Phoebe's going out too, and we really need someone to watch your mom while we're out. I know you're not a big bad teenager yet, but do you think you can handle it?"  
  
Chris smiled. "Yeah."  
  
Paige smiled too. "Well, I suppose such a job can't go unrewarded. Does $20 sound like enough?"  
  
Chris' smile vanished. He pulled away and sat up, once again failing to meet her eyes. "Sounds right." He got up and headed to the door. With his back still towards her, he quietly said, "I won't let you down." Then he left without another word.  
  
"I know," Paige muttered after he was gone. 


	3. No Answers, Just More Questions

Walking back to his room, Chris realized how hungry he now was. Aunt Paige and Aunt Phoebe were still getting ready to leave, and looking into his mother's room he saw she was distracted by someone on the phone. Now would be a good time to sneak downstairs, get some dinner, and hopefully avoid anyone in the process.  
  
Reaching the bottom of the stairs, his attention was drawn to the mantle. Walking past the cluttered dining room table, Chris went over and gazed at the picture of Mom, Dad, and Wyatt.  
  
Chris had been competing with his brother's memory since the day he was born--the same day Wyatt had disappeared. The arrival of the youngest had so distracted his family, they never noticed the danger facing the oldest. Not until it was too late, anyway. Chris spent his life trying to make this up to his family. Usually, he ended up failing. If he was ever given a second chance, Chris swore he'd do everything in his power to save his older brother next time around.  
  
Fervently wanting this day to be over, and knowing tomorrow probably wasn't going to get any better, he went to the kitchen. He quickly heated and ate his dinner. Then he went back to the dining room, cleared the table, and started washing the dishes.  
  
In her room, Piper finished her call. "Thanks, Dad. See you in the morning." The relief she felt talking to her father evaporated as soon as she put the phone down. Now came the hard part.  
  
"Leo, I need you."  
  
Instantly, a cloud of orbs appeared before her. Quickly they combined into the form of her ex-husband. "Piper," Leo asked, "What's wrong?"  
  
She got straight to the point. "Chris orbed his backpack from the entryway to his bedroom today." She let that sink in.  
  
Leo's face registered shock. "Telekinesis? That brings his known powers to what, six now? Soon he's going to have more than the Charmed Ones combined."  
  
Piper frowned. Leo was concerned about the number of powers? "Did you not hear what I said? He used active powers today. I thought binding him took away his powers until we released them."  
  
"Normally, yes. That's what happened with you and your sisters. Chris isn't normal, though, and you know it."  
  
"Don't," Piper warned. "Don't finish that thought. You know Chris is here for a reason, even if you don't know what it is."  
  
"His existence defies everything," Leo reminded her. "I'm just saying, maybe we should throw the rulebook out as far as Chris is concerned. Clearly his powers are growing, despite the binding. He's breaking his boundaries, Piper. He's unbinding himself."  
  
"That's impossible," Piper denied. "Not after what we went through just to bind him in the first place."  
  
Downstairs, Phoebe entered the kitchen looking for her earrings. She stopped short when she saw Chris by the sink. She watched silently for a moment as he finished cleaning all the dishes by hand. "Do you want help putting them away?" she asked.  
  
"No, thank you," he replied. "I can get them."  
  
Thinking now might be a good time to try and get something out of him, Phoebe tentatively began, "Paige told me she offered you $20 to watch the house tonight..." She stopped when she saw Chris immediately stiffen. Wrong approach, she thought. He was sure to clam up now.  
  
"I don't need the money," he defended.  
  
"Of course not," Phoebe tried again. Maybe all wasn't lost. "It's just that it's a big job, and I'm not sure $20 is enough."  
  
Chris turned to look at her. He had the most curious expression. Not for the first time, Phoebe wished she could read him. How did a child so young block an empath anyways?  
  
"What do you mean?" Phoebe heard the suspicion in his tone.  
  
"Well," she mused, "Since both Aunt Paige and I are going to be gone, I think it's only fair I kick in another $20." A gleam in his eyes told her something was up, but the gleam immediately disappeared, fast enough for her to question whether she actually saw it to begin with.  
  
Phoebe appraised her nephew. Looking at him, she couldn't help but notice precisely how young and innocent he looked. Yet Phoebe wasn't fooled. As much as she loved Chris, she knew exactly how manipulative the boy could be. However, before she could continue her thought, Paige entered obviously ready to leave.  
  
"Be good tonight, Chris. You're in charge," Paige reminded him as both she and her sister went out the door. Chris nodded, then turned to head back to his room.  
  
Upstairs, the argument was escalating. "We bound him for a reason, Leo! Or don't you remember what we went through before we made that decision?"  
  
A small smile played on Leo's face. Oh, yeah. He remembered. Half the magical community probably remembered. If it wasn't for the fact Chris had been born at Magic School, Leo had no doubts that the entire world would probably remember as well.  
  
Clearly this was the wrong reaction, as his smile seemed to infuriate Piper even more. Her voice raised, "Your son is falling, Leo! He's about to be expelled from yet another school! He's skipping, and on the rare occasions he goes, his work doesn't even come close to passing grades! He's distant, moody, and won't talk to me! Meanwhile, he's up to something--yet again-- and I have no idea what! He's in trouble and he refuses to let me help! He's suffering, Leo, and there's nothing I can do to ease it! Some guardian you are, where's your guidance from up high when he needs it?"  
  
Stung, Leo shot back, "Don't you tell me I don't help my son!"  
  
Piper was about to give a strong retort, when the implication of what he was saying hit her full force. "What do you mean, you help him?" Realization dawning, she accused, "Do you know what Chris is up to?"  
  
Leo said nothing. Piper took his silence as confirmation. Anger rose in her. "How dare you--"  
  
"Dad? You came?"  
  
Too late, Piper realized she'd left her bedroom door open. A huge mistake, especially when she looked into her son's eyes.  
  
Chris' excitement at seeing his dad disappeared the second he saw his dad's face. Dad didn't seem happy to see him. Quite the opposite in fact. Instantly, it dawned on Chris that Dad wasn't here to see him, Dad was here because Mom had called him. Chris immediately regretted rushing in, and wished he would stop foolishly getting his hopes up.  
  
Incredibly hurt, Chris ran away and locked himself in his room. He threw himself on his bed and covered himself with his blanket and pillow. Tears were threatening to stream down his face. When he was younger, it had been unbearably painful to realize he wasn't the one his dad wanted. Dad wanted Wyatt. Everything he did was towards finding Wyatt. Dad had left when Wyatt had gone, and Chris clearly wasn't enough incentive for him to stay home, or even to come and visit. Chris tried very hard to be a good son, in spite of the trouble he always seemed to be in, but Leo never saw the goodness. Mom only called him when she didn't know how to handle him. Dad always showed up when Mom called. He never showed up when Chris called, and Chris had learned a long time ago to stop calling.  
  
Unfortunately, locked doors didn't stop dads who could orb in. Chris heard his dad form next to him. He buried himself further under his pillow.  
  
"Chris."  
  
Leo saw his son trying desperately to avoid him. He knew he shouldn't be here right now, as talking with Chris was forbidden. Leo, however, was never one to always follow rules, much like his youngest son. Plus, Leo had also seen the look in his son's eyes and knew he had to see him.  
  
Leo scanned Chris' room. On the dresser, he noticed his letter. It appeared unopened. He sighed. "You haven't opened it yet?" The muffled sobs coming from underneath the pillow were his only answer.  
  
He was about to say something else when the familiar sound of the other Elders reached him. Leo knew that as part whitelighter, Chris could hear them also. "I'm sorry, baby. I have to go." He orbed out, leaving Chris even more upset. Wasn't he worth a few minutes of time? Couldn't the Elders wait one more minute? Even if his dad couldn't stay forever, he'd never followed him before. Chris simply did not understand that while his dad afforded all his time to the search for Wyatt and his work with the Elders, he still managed to see Mom but never him.  
  
Although he hadn't heard her enter, he was suddenly wrapped up in his mother's embrace. She pulled him close, blanket and all, and pleaded, "Please just talk to me. Tell me what's going on. Let me help." Chris said nothing, but stayed in her arms until he finally fell asleep. 


	4. A New Day?

A/N: This is more of an interlude. I'm incredibly busy right now, and while there are more parts, it's taking me a while to put them together. Thank you again for your comments.  
  
Phoebe came down the stairs intending to start breakfast before her older sister got up. Piper had been in no mood last night to talk when she and Paige had returned, and Phoebe wanted to ease some of her sister's troubles this morning. Something upsetting had obviously happened last night with Chris, and considering what she and Paige had found out, today was once again shaping up to be a day not worth looking forward to.  
  
To Phoebe's chagrin, however, Piper was already in the kitchen when she arrived. To her surprise, her sister looked cheerful--a far cry from last night. Just as Phoebe entered the kitchen, an orb cloud appeared next to her forming Paige, who was already dressed.  
  
"Morning!" Paige ventured brightly.  
  
"Why is walking so difficult?" Piper good-naturedly complained. "Between you and Chris, you'd think walking was the worst activity in the world." Since orbing was a whitelighter power and not a witch's power, it could not be bound, so Chris still had it. Piper wouldn't want it bound anyways, as it provided a measure of security for her son in case of danger.  
  
"Aw, quit complaining. You know you'd do it all the time too, if you had the ability. Besides, it's not like we do it all the time." Paige batted back. Then she added, "You're in a surprisingly good mood this morning. Should I be looking for the pod you crawled out of?"  
  
Deflating, Piper revealed, "Leo was here last night."  
  
"Oh." Phoebe shared a knowing look with Paige. "And who won that argument?"  
  
"I'm not sure, it got interrupted by Chris."  
  
Loud exclamations erupted: "What!"  
  
"Yeah, see, he, uh, walked in on us. I forgot to close the door. It was awful, so I don't want you guys bringing it up." She forced another smile. "Today, for all intents and purposes, is a very happy day."  
  
"Poor little guy," Paige muttered.  
  
"Not so little anymore,"Phoebe reminded her. "So," she hesitated, then turned back to Piper. "What did Leo have to say?"  
  
"Oh, nothing much," Piper replied, a little too casually. She turned around to take a new cereal box out of the cabinet. "You know, stuff like Chris is unbinding himself, his powers are growing, and evidently Leo knows exactly what Chris is up to."  
  
A second chorus of "What!" greeted this statement.  
  
Piper turned back, smirking. "Yeah, that was my reaction. I didn't get to call him on it though, 'cause of the Chris stuff and all." Piper waved her arms around trying to get her point across.  
  
Phoebe and Paige just looked at each other. Suddenly, an orb cloud appeared by the kitchen table. Chris formed out of it, clearly having just woken up. His hair was sticking straight up, and his pajamas were all crumpled. He yawned, stretched his arms, and tried to wipe the sleep out of his eyes.  
  
"Morning, sweetie," Piper greeted her son. "Happy birthday!" Chris just yawned again. "What'cha want for breakfast today? Your choice--eggs, bacon, pancakes?"  
  
Chris blinked and eyed the cereal box on the counter. It was one of those sugary cereals; one his mom usually never let him have. He looked at her suspiciously. "Anything?"  
  
"Anything," she confirmed.  
  
Chris snatched the box, got a bowl and some milk, and sat down at the table. Looking back at his mom, who merely raised an eyebrow, he got back up and took out the box of sugar too.  
  
"Ah, the joys of a sugar high," Paige said knowingly. "As if you don't have enough energy already. But I suppose you're going to need it today!"  
  
Chris was too busy piling sugar on top of his already too sugary cereal to respond to Paige's teasing. Phoebe tried her turn. "So, now that you're a big old teenager, I suppose you're too old for hugs and kisses?" To illustrate her point, she blew kisses at him. Chris made a face, then ignored her.  
  
Piper laughed and lightly swatted her sister. "Stop that. It's bad enough that soon I'll have to fend off all the other girls. I don't want have to start with you!"  
  
Without warning, and not even looking up, Chris unexpectedly announced: "Someone's at the door."  
  
Just then, the doorbell rang. Troubled, Piper looked at her son. He seemed completely unaware of what he had just done. In fact, he was already working on his second bowl of cereal and was playing with whatever toy he had managed to find in the box. Giving her sisters a curious look, she quietly said, "I'll get it."  
  
Piper walked down the hallway, her mind racing. Chris had just accurately predicted Victor's arrival at the house. Did this mean yet another of his powers was returning? How many were there? Obviously, he was aware of the telekinesis, but what else might he know about his powers? The thought that Chris might be aware of his potential terrified Piper. Reaching the door, and tired beyond her years, Piper wearily noted that this was yet another thing she needed to find out about her young son. 


End file.
